Republicans in the House of Representatives are the latest group to desperately try to get information out of the White House about the nature of President Obama’s plans to take executive action over the issue of immigration reform. Republican lawmakers on the House judiciary committee sent the president a letter on Monday in which they demanded that he “immediately” made public the recommendations he has been given by legal advisers with regard to getting around Congress when making amendments to the nation’s immigration laws. There is little chance that the recommendations from attorney general Eric Holder and homeland security secretary Josh Johnson are going to be made public, as the Obama administration has kept its policy options a close secret ‒ even in private sessions with immigrant advocates and other lawmakers.
The letter does however serve the purpose of showing that the Republican party is not about to ease its pressure on the president anytime soon, especially following the decision to delay any executive action on immigration reform until after the November midterm elections.
The lawmakers insist that releasing the recommendations would help to repair the damage caused to the political process in the United States by the secret nature of the administration’s deliberations. “Whether it’s now or November, it is never acceptable for the executive branch to ignore the constitution and unilaterally give amnesty to unlawful immigrants,” the letter states. “The least the administration can do is give Americans the opportunity to see the recommendations that you are considering before you take any actions.”